Godzilla
Godzilla or Gojira is an enormous dinosaur mutated by radiation. He is often referred to as "the King of the Monsters", and is a pop-culture icon to this day. Overview The original Godzilla was a prehistoric monster 50 meters tall and weighing 20,000 metric tons, which terrorized the ships of Japan. It was disturbed by an American Hydrogen bomb testing in the Pacific Ocean. After attacking Tokyo, destroying much of the city and killing tens of thousands, Godzilla was defeated when the scientist Dr. Daisuke Serizawa committed suicide out of shame and guilt after activating an experimental weapon, the Oxygen Destroyer, which completely dissolved Godzilla. It was stated at the end of the film that it was doubtful that there was only one creature, alluding not only to the many incarnations of Godzilla that would later appear but also to all the other kaiju monsters that would be featured in future movies. So far there have been 29 films, most featuring an altered incarnation of Godzilla fighting other kaiju. Godzilla's appearance may have changed over the years, but many of his characteristics have remained constant. His roar has remained the same, only changing in pitch. Godzilla's approximate appearance, regardless of the design of the suit utilized for the creature, remains the same general shape, which is instantly recognizable: a giant, mutant dinosaur with rough, bumpy charcoal-gray scales, a long powerful tail, and jagged, bone-colored dorsal fins. Godzilla's iconic character design is a blended chimera inspired by various dinosaurs, gleaned from children's dinosaur books and illustrations from an issue of Life magazine: Godzilla has the head and lower body of a Tyrannosaurus, a triple row of dorsal plates reminiscent of a Stegosaurus, the neck and forearms of Iguanodon and the tail and skin texture of a crocodile. Godzilla's dorsal plates have themselves altered in size and appearance over the years. Abilities Godzilla's signature weapon is his distinctive atomic breath. His dorsal spines glow ominously, and then he lets loose with a concentrated blast of radiation from his mouth. This power is commonly mistaken for breathing fire. The color of the atomic breath corresponds to the color of the dorsal plates. Godzilla has been shown apparently being able to adjust the intensity of his ray, varying from a blast of superheated vapor, to a beam with explosive and concussive properties. In most of the films, his breath is neon-blue, although in some films it is reddish-orange. In addition to his deadly atomic breath, Godzilla can also emit atomic energy in all directions from every inch of his body in a short-range pulse called the nuclear pulse. Godzilla used this ability to kill Orga. Godzilla has also displayed an uncanny ability to resist injury. Not even the pressure and cold of deep sea trenches can kill him. Godzilla displays an immunity to conventional weaponry, and he is even shown to be resistant to technology from the future. He has demonstrated the ability to survive complete submersion in magma for an extended period of time. He has even survived being at ground zero during asteroid impacts and being buried under tons of ice for years at a time, seemingly cut off from any oxygen source. His hide has been breached only occasionally, usually only by other kaiju. This is all possible due to an extremely advanced and highly efficient regenerative ability. Godzilla's regenerative abilities may have something to do with his radioactive properties. Regenerator G1 is the name given to a substance in his cells that is responsible for his swift healing. Even neural tissue can be rebuilt by Godzilla's unique biology. This is remarkable since neural tissue does not heal in naturally occurring organisms. Behind the scenes *With the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki still fresh in the Japanese conscious, the original Godzilla (1954) was conceived as a monster created by nuclear explosions and a metaphor for nuclear weapons in general. As the film series expanded, the stories took on less serious undertones portraying Godzilla in the role of a hero, while later movies returned to depicting the character as a destructive monster. *''Gojira'' (ゴジラ) is a combination of two Japanese words: gorira (ゴリラ, "gorilla"), and kujira (鯨（くじら）, "whale"), which is fitting because in one planning stage, Godzilla was described as "a cross between a gorilla and a whale", alluding to his size, power and aquatic origin. A popular story is that "Gojira" was actually the nickname of a hulking stagehand at Toho Studio. The story has not been verified, however, because in the fifty years since the film's original release, no one claiming to be the employee has ever stepped forward and no photographs have ever surfaced. *In 1998, TriStar Pictures produced a remake set in New York City, directed by Roland Emmerich and starring Matthew Broderick; the film's name was simply Godzilla. Despite negative to mixed reviews from film critics and negative reception from the fans of the original Japanese Godzilla, the film was a financial success, taking in nearly $380 million worldwide, and spawned an animated television series called Godzilla: The Series, which drew much better reception all-around. However, no sequel was made. Toho classifies the monster in this movie as Zilla, and it was featured briefly in their film Godzilla: Final Wars. Previous to this announcement, the creature was widely referred to by traditional Godzilla fans as "GINO", for "Godzilla In Name Only". Gallery Godzilla.1964.jpg Godzilla.1991.jpg Godzilla.1994.jpg Godzilla.2002.jpg Godzilla.2004.jpg Godzilla.milennium.jpg Godzilla1.jpg Godzilla2.jpg Godzilla4.jpg Godzilla5.jpg Godzilla6.jpg Godzilla7.jpg Godzilla8.jpg Godzilla9.jpg Godzilla68.jpg See Also *Zilla External links *Godzilla on Wikizilla Category:Fauna Category:Fictional Creatures Category:Godzilla Universe Category:Kaiju Category:EN Category:Mutants Category:Aquatic Lifeforms Category:Amphibious Creatures Category:Dinosaurs Category:Reptiles Category:Theropods Category:Males Category:Movie Creatures Category:Characters Portrayed by Haruo Nakajima Category:Characters Portrayed by Hiroshi Sekita Category:Characters Portrayed by Katsumi Tezuka Category:Characters Portrayed by Mizuo Yoshida Category:Marine Reptiles Category:Extreme Category:Characters Portrayed by Ted Cassidy Category:Characters Debuting in 1954 Category:Radioactive Creatures Category:Immortal Creatures Category:Live Action Creatures